Sticks and Stones
by Duckscrossingtheroad
Summary: "Ron, when we were at Mr Lovegood's and we each said which Hallow we'd choose, you said the wand...would you still choose the wand?" Set after the defeat of Voldemort.
**A/N Greetings readers! I hope that wherever you are, you are having a wonderful day and thank you so much for taking the time to read this! Happy reading!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters mentioned, they belong to J. K. Rowling**

* * *

 _"Grief is like the ocean; it comes on waves ebbing and flowing. Sometimes the water is calm, and sometimes it is overwhelming. All we can do is learn how to swim."_ – Vicki Harrison

* * *

As Ron sat amongst the castle's wreckage, he found himself thinking about death. This was, perhaps, not surprising considering that Death had been rather busy lately, but nevertheless, it was not a subject that he often pondered. _Death. So much Death. It's very permanent, isn't it? Death is, although I guess there's no 'very' about it. It's permanent, just permanent._ Ron sighed to himself. _We have all the magic in the world and yet we can't reverse death,_ he thought bitterly.

"Hey, Ron?" Harry said suddenly, and even though he had spoken rather quietly, Ron jumped in surprise. Evidently he had been so wrapped up in his own internal monologue, he hadn't noticed that Harry had come and sat beside him. Looking around, Ron noticed that there were still many people about; perhaps they were trying to find out the fate of a loved one.

"Yeah?"

"Would you still choose the wand?" Harry asked, staring straight ahead at the almost unrecognisable Great Hall that now lay before them.

"What?" Ron asked, unsure of what Harry was referring to.

"When we were at Mr Lovegood's, and we each said which Hallow we'd choose, you said the wand."

Ron nodded, "Yeah."

"Would you still choose the wand?" _After everything that's happened_ was what Harry didn't need to add. At that, Ron was silent for a few moments, thinking. _Would I? Would having the wand have helped? Would it have changed anything? Maybe. Maybe it would have. Maybe if they'd had the wand, Lupin would still be alive, maybe Tonks would still be alive, Colin Creevey, Fred,_ Fred. Ron's heart panged painfully and he felt a sharp stab of agony at the thought of his brother. His now dead brother. Ron could feel tears threatening to well up to the surface; he was quick to quash them away. For the moment, he had been trying not to think about him, hoping to find sometime later to deal with what had happened. _Later,_ he told himself. _You can lose it later._ With that last thought, Ron forced his mind back to the matter at hand. _What was the question again? Right, the wand. The wand. The Elder Wand, the Wand of Destiny, the Deathstick._ Ron almost smiled at that last one. _I guess at the end of the day, it is just a stick,_ Ron thought. _It can be so powerful, and yet, without a witch or wizard to wield it, it really is just a stick. …Fred was killed by a stick._ Ron once again tried to shove any thoughts of his brother to the back of his mind. _Later. Ron breathed in deeply, in an attempt to steady his emotions, held it for a couple of seconds, before exhaling. Now, back to the matter at hand. The wand. Well, having the wand could be good but…maybe not the wand._

Ron slowly shook his head. "No, I don't think I would, actually," Ron finally answered.

"Would you pick the stone?" Harry asked, looking at the ground. The ground on which they were currently sitting was actually a massive pile of rocks of various shapes and sizes. There was seemingly no sign of the stairs that had previously been there.

The allure of having the stone was obvious; _I could see Fred again._ _But it wouldn't really be him, would it? And according to the story, it_ _wouldn't_ _be right, he_ _wouldn't_ _belong here, would he?_

"No, he wouldn't," Harry answered, much to Ron's surprise. Evidently, he had been thinking aloud.

"I just want to see him again, talk to him again, just one last time," Ron whispered sadly, desperately. _I could have one last talk with him, one last joke, one last ti-_

"I think I know a way you can," Harry said quietly, interrupting his thoughts.

Ron looked at him questioningly. "The Mirror of Erised," Harry continued, remembering what he had seen the first time he gazed into the mirror seven years ago. "It shows us the most desperate desire of our hearts," Harry said, recalling what a certain Professor had once told him. "And it showed me my family, so…maybe it'll show you yours."

Ron nodded. "I'll be back," he said before standing up and making his way out of what remained of the entranceway to the Great Hall.

* * *

After three wrong turns, Ron finally found himself in the doorway of the classroom home to the Mirror of Erised. Ron was about to step toward the mirror, when he suddenly felt a wave of apprehension wash over him. _What if I don't see him? What if my heart's desire isn't him? What if I do see him? What if he_ _doesn't_ _want to see me? What if- Ron, get over it,_ he tried to tell himself. Tentatively, he stepped towards the mirror, taking a quick peek, before immediately looking down. He found himself about a metre away from the mirror, but unable to tear his eyes away from the ground which had suddenly become so fascinating. Therefore, it was only natural that he jumped when he heard his brother's voice suddenly speak up, "You know you're going to make your neck sore if you keep craning it like that," Fred informed him.

Ron looked up at his older brother, smiling but at the time, having to fight back tears. Despite his best efforts, a few droplets managed to escape to the surface and slowly made their way down his cheeks. "Are you crying?" Fred asked him teasingly.

"A little," Ron said sheepishly

"A little?!" Fred exclaimed. "Ron, I died! You should at least be sobbing, if not screaming about how your life is incomplete without your favourite brother, Fred," his 'favourite brother' scolded. Ron made a noise which could only be described as halfway between a sob and chuckle. He could feel himself losing it but strangely enough, that didn't seem like such a bad thing any more. Before long, he was full on sobbing.

"You know I was kidding about the sobbing, right?" Fred informed him several moments later.

Ron tried to answer but found he was having trouble speaking. "I know, I know, it's just- it's just-" Ron paused and took a deep breath before continuing. "I miss you," Ron finally whispered.

"I know," Fred said gently.

"You've only been gone a few hours and I miss you so badly. I mean, how am I supposed to survive a lifetime without you?"

"Ron, I'm still here with you, aren't I? Just because I'm dead doesn't mean I'm gone from your life. You're not getting rid of me that easily," Fred said, smiling.

Ron smiled back at him. "Okay," he said quietly. "You know, I should probably leave soon-"

"What?! And leave me here alone all on my lonesome?!" Fred exclaimed. Ron looked at him, sheepishly.

"Ronald! If you leave me here alone, I swear I will haunt you for the rest of your life! Which won't be very long if I'm haunting you!" Fred threatened, all the while managing to maintain a very serious expression. Ron turned back to the mirror, smiling. _I wish George were here,_ Ron thought and just like that, George appeared in the mirror alongside Fred.

Fred and mirror George turned to each other, both wearing an expression of wonder. "Wow, it's almost like looking in a mirror," Fred said in awe, causing all three brothers to chuckle. Just as Ron was reminiscing on how good it felt to just hang out with Fred and George and not have to worry about horcruxes or death eaters or some bloke who liked to call himself 'Voldemort', he remembered why George had appeared in the mirror too. However, he wasn't quite ready to say a final goodbye just yet.

"If I leave now, will you be here when I come back?" Ron asked, knowing that he himself was the one who decided what he saw in the mirror, but asking all the same.

"Of course we will," mirror George said, his voice soft. Fred nodded along with his brother.

"We'll be here as long as you need us," Fred reassured him. Ron nodded and stood there for a moment, before turning away from the mirror and slowly making his way back to the classroom's doorway. Once he was there, he turned back to glance at the mirror once more.

"See you later, Ronald!" The twins yelled, waving happily at their departing brother.

Ron smiled, ignoring the fresh tears rolling down his face. "See you later," he whispered, holding up a hand, before finally turning around and making his way out of the classroom.

* * *

After only two wrong turns this time, Ron found himself back amongst the rubble of the Great Hall. He scanned the crowd, looking for someone, before finally spotting them standing alone, on what Ron vaguely recognized was the remains of the stairs' bannister. Once Ron had made his way over, he enveloped him in a hug. Ron half expected him to protest, knowing he wasn't really the hugging type but to his surprise, George embraced him, wrapping his arms around him tightly. Perhaps he had needed a hug as much as Ron had.

They stayed like that for several moments, clinging to each other. "Thanks," George whispered, his voice slightly muffled by Ron's shoulder; Ron heard him nevertheless.

"It's okay," he whispered back.

After a few moments, they both pulled back, neither of them choosing to comment on the other's bloodshot eyes. "You know," Ron began, "there is a way that you can still see him..."

* * *

A little while later, Ron sat down beside Harry. As of now, they were both sitting on what was a, now rare, patch of floor, with their backs leaning against the remnants of what used to be one of the long tables. For a while, neither of them said anything, both silently acknowledging the other. Then Ron shattered the silence,

"I'd choose the cloak."

* * *

 **The end. This took me quite a while to write (and my computer has crashed about four times in the past six months so I've had to start again several times)and the first time I wrote it, it just wasn't right so I rewrote the whole thing and I think it's turned out okay (hopefully). I must say, it turned out to be quite different to what I originally planned but nevertheless, writing this definitely helped me a lot(especially when I was feeling stressed about exams and whatnot). With the Ron and George exchange, I did try to extend it but I found I just couldn't get it right so I've decided to leave it as it is. Reviews make me very happy (*hint hint*). Anyway, I really hope you enjoyed reading this! I hope I did the characters justice :)**

 **Until next time,**


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